‘Poultry prices to be reduced by Rs 20 to 25 in few days’

LAHORE: The Pakistan Poultry Association has annonced that poultry prices will be reduced by Rs 20 to 25 within next few days.

Dr Abdul Karim, chairman Pakistan Poultry Association announced this in a press briefing at Lahore Press Club here on Wednesday.

He said that prices of poultry products had remained very low for a long time, causing losses to farmers and resulting into closure of almost 30 percent poultry farms in the country.

Presently, demand was high while supply was limited, however, the situation would improve as a huge supply of chicken was in pipeline and prices of chicken would start reducing within a few days, he added.

“It is a perishable product and there is not enough storage facility available and it has to be sold immediately irrespective of what price the farmer gets,” he added.

He said ” when prices of poultry products are raised, the consumers often blame farmers for the hike in prices. This is not true.”

” The fact is that for most part of the year, chicken prices remain less than the cost of production, it is only for a few months that a farmer gets his premium, which gives him compensation for his previous losses,” he added.

The PPA chairman said that poultry sector was the most organized branch of the agro-based sectors of Pakistan.

He said poultry sector had been serving the nation and providing affordable poultry products to the masses to fulfil the requirements of animal protein.

Poultry at present, contributed 40 per cent of the total meat consumption and generated employment and income for about 1.8 million people, he added.

To a question, he clarified that they used halal poultry feed and no imported feed was used.—APP